New Project

[nilcum]

Phaser? This is a new term to me, at least in this context...

http://phaser405.tripod.com/iphaser.htm

The basic idea is that your sound card can be uses to generate pules that a TENS (shocking) unit would generate. You hook your computer up to the hifi input on a stereo and you have a homegrown tens unit. Electronically, nothing more than a few step-up transformers and a few resistors is required. Obviously, if you don't know what you are doing it can be dangerous.

One of the cooler things about phaser is that is connects to an IRC server that allows other users to control the program being run. Something like this would be neat to see in the teases here too. Real-time user interaction that would allow others to control not only a TENS unit but a masturbator, electromagnet, web cam etc.

[nilcum]

Of course you could mix some form of ECMAScript (JS, AS) with XML like for example Adobe's MXML or simply HTML itself, but we're talking about a system that is targeted at novice programmers, so we opted for the simpler solution.

Use the right tool for the job, guys! Just because Vodka is good at extinguishing pain doesn't mean it's good at extinguishing fire.

Actually, you might be onto something. I'm not sure how flash is at exporting objects like COM (ActiveX) is but if it is possible to create a flash object where the methods and properties are available via javascript you would have a very easy to use scripting language. Maybe that is what Action Script is all about. I don't know. My flash foo is weak.

[nilcum]

True. But what you're proposing is in my eyes putting too much emphasis on the software. For us it's the authors who count. Our job is to empower them to write kickass teases the way *they* want and for that we felt like we needed to give them the flexibility of an actual scripting language.

For us however, the visual editor is more meant to get people started with the FlashTease system, what we're really after is what people will be able to do with the scripting.

Second the focus on the authors!!!!

Perhaps you could release more sample code or even some documentation now so that people could get started with the flash teases. I for one would not want to use a visual editor. Give me notepad and a beer.

[nilcum]

So, the auto-continue thing is done. I think it will be easy enough to do what seraph0x suggested and make a local webserver that will install as a windows service. I'll likely use .NET 3.0.

The first goal will be to provide a text to speech API!

That's right you will be able to have the teases read to you. Granted it will be in a computer voice like Microsoft Anna but hey, it's better than nothing. This could be implement in a very similar fashion to the auto-continue with the dynamic XMLHTTP requests.

I was also considering building in ability for new teases to have a script embedded in them to specify things to send to the local server.

Just basically someplace in the tease an author could place [sound=60] or [delay=10]. Authors could of course go back and "upgrade" their teases to use the same thing.

The last think I was thinking about putting in the initial release is the ability to connect to a silc server. It's encrypted IRC. This will allow for more peer-to-peer control in the future.

Likely an auto-update too.

This might take more than a day =). The end goal is still a modular device that can be controlled through this service. The electromagnet seems like a good first step. If the parts ended up costing $50 would anyone other than me us it?

[seraph0x]

Regarding the XML language proposal, mae0314 totally gets it - I got nothing to add.

Yeah I thought about that. I'm guessing milovana has gigabytes of images stored on it's server. While I could include such an archive it would really suck to download that much. On the flip side the content is out of user control and not available without an Internet connection. Perhaps the solution is to allow for both. You could just as easily put in a file:// link.

If you want to hotlink images on our server, please let me know once you have a working version of your client. There are a few issues we need to discuss, before you let it out into the wild. I hope you understand.

Actually, you might be onto something. I'm not sure how flash is at exporting objects like COM (ActiveX) is but if it is possible to create a flash object where the methods and properties are available via javascript you would have a very easy to use scripting language. Maybe that is what Action Script is all about. I don't know. My flash foo is weak.

JavaScript and ActionScript 3 are two implementations of the same standard: ECMAScript. I.e. the syntax is the same. In fact the AS3 VM has recently been contributed by Adobe to the Mozilla Foundation for use as a JS VM.

That means that there is no point in interfacing JavaScript in Flash for this reason. If you simply want to run "JavaScript"-style code, you can use AS' eval() function. For us however this wasn't an option for security reasons.

The first goal will be to provide a text to speech API!

That's right you will be able to have the teases read to you. Granted it will be in a computer voice like Microsoft Anna but hey, it's better than nothing. This could be implement in a very similar fashion to the auto-continue with the dynamic XMLHTTP requests.

I hope you'll forgive me saying that this is a very odd priority. There was a short movement in the area of anime adventure games where Microsoft TTS was used, but most people turned it off, so eventually developers didn't include it anymore. Turns out that no voice is perceived to be more immersive than a computer-generated one. (Unless you're visually impaired obviously.)

From your post it sounds like all of the easy stuff it done! Thats great.

The easy stuff? Thanks for belittling my work. Just kidding, it's alright, no offense taken. But in my eyes what we did so far was actually the hard part.

Cool, if you enabled something as simple as a user specified meta refresh the teases would be more enjoyable -- at least for me anyway. Hands free . Actually, it distribute a small piece of javascript ccode that would do this without any changes to the site.

Our policy regarding the regular teases is: Less is more. Your JavaScript snippet is fine of course, our users can do with the teases whatever they like. It's just we want the teases themselves to be static. The FlashTease system will fill the need for interactivity.

Perhaps you could release more sample code or even some documentation now so that people could get started with the flash teases. I for one would not want to use a visual editor. Give me notepad and a beer.

The testing guys are examining the FlashTease editor as we speak. Documentation for the scripting language is also in the works, but stuff like that takes time. After all Milovana has a reputation to lose in terms of quality.

---

To be completely honest: It's hard to see the point in doing another PCM2, pcm3dev, CyberMistress, FlashTease clone. I don't want to discourage you, but it's just so frustrating because we are so desperately looking for good technical people to join our Team. But those people who come up with these ideas are mostly young, like 18, 19 and full of ideas, but they don't have much experience, so they think they can do it all better and they start another project and then get bored and abandon it.

Sure, in a team you don't always get your way. But the big advantage of a team effort is that it will be carried on if you lose interest for a while. And your name will still be on the cover.

Sorry, I know I sound patronizing. Feel free to go ahead with your project and let me know if there is anything we can help you with. If you want to contribute to the FlashTease project in the area of hardware let me know, I'd be very interested. In the area of software I think we're pretty well set up with guys like mrfire, Binary and most recently SilkySheering, but if you wanna discuss any ideas, let me know.

[nilcum]

If you want to hotlink images on our server, please let me know once you have a working version of your client. There are a few issues we need to discuss, before you let it out into the wild. I hope you understand.

I'm thinking of just writing a service now that can be used either from your flash tease or AJAX style of javascript. It wouldn't have a GUI... you could just make requests to it. The flashtease system and really any other system could take advantage of it at that point.

That means that there is no point in interfacing JavaScript in Flash for this reason. If you simply want to run "JavaScript"-style code, you can use AS' eval() function.

Right, but what is missing is the ability for third parties to modify the Flash DOM (if there is such a concept). At least, I don't know how to do it. With a browser, it is easy for third parties to manipulate every attribute of the DOM through javascript. I'd be interested to learn how the same can be done through Flash.

I hope you'll forgive me saying that this is a very odd priority.

Actually the new TTS API released with Vista and ported to .NET 3.0 is pretty good. It's something I'd be interested to try out for a tease and would provide the foundations of a daemon that would be used to control hardware devices after that. If no one but me is interested in that I guess I really don't care. But I'll release it anyway. The TTS API is just an easy place to start.

The easy stuff? Thanks for belittling my work. Just kidding, it's alright, no offense taken. But in my eyes what we did so far was actually the hard part.

Ooops, open mouth... insert foot. I'm very impressed with the Flash tease system you and the milovana team built. Didn't mean that come come off the way it did. Sorry.

If you want to contribute to the FlashTease project in the area of hardware let me know, I'd be very interested.

Yes I am interested, this is what I am trying to do. But, like I said I have little flash experience.

[ts]

If you want to hotlink images on our server, please let me know once you have a working version of your client.

I'm thinking of just writing a service now that can be used either from your flash tease or AJAX style of javascript. It wouldn't have a GUI... you could just make requests to it. The flashtease system and really any other system could take advantage of it at that point.

That sounds nice but you started this thread with a script that included "<image>https://whatever.com/1.jpg</image> " - which looks like hot-linking? So of course the admins are worried about traffic....

The easy stuff? Thanks for belittling my work. Just kidding, it's alright, no offense taken. But in my eyes what we did so far was actually the hard part.

I just have to comment this, seraph0x - Yes, if you have a working parser, compiler and visual editor - you have completed all the technical hard work. (And I must say I am impressed by the samples I have seen - looks to be way better than PCM, etc - but I still think the visual editor is the key... creative people are visual...)
But a techie like me might even try the creative process, once you complete the boring part, which is documenting the FlashTease-syntax....
(If you had gone down the XML-road, I would never even consider writing a script - XML is readable by humans and computers, but writeable mostly by computers...)

[seraph0x]

I'm thinking of just writing a service now that can be used either from your flash tease or AJAX style of javascript. It wouldn't have a GUI... you could just make requests to it. The flashtease system and really any other system could take advantage of it at that point.

That, sir, would be effing awesome!

We could definitely utilize that very easily and it would take a big chunk of work off our back if you get the quality right.

Right, but what is missing is the ability for third parties to modify the Flash DOM (if there is such a concept). At least, I don't know how to do it. With a browser, it is easy for third parties to manipulate every attribute of the DOM through javascript. I'd be interested to learn how the same can be done through Flash.

Hmm, can you explain who you mean by "third parties"?

Actually the new TTS API released with Vista and ported to .NET 3.0 is pretty good. It's something I'd be interested to try out for a tease and would provide the foundations of a daemon that would be used to control hardware devices after that. If no one but me is interested in that I guess I really don't care. But I'll release it anyway. The TTS API is just an easy place to start.

I know, but that doesn't mean that the computer realizes that it's supposed to speak in a sexy tone.

... don't tell me there's an option for that!

Ooops, open mouth... insert foot. I'm very impressed with the Flash tease system you and the milovana team built. Didn't mean that come come off the way it did. Sorry.

No need to apologize, really! I'm always quite direct myself.

Yes I am interested, this is what I am trying to do. But, like I said I have little flash experience.

No Flash needed on your part. We'll make a concept together on what features your client is going to have and how we can access them. Then you can write the client and we'll integrate it into the FlashTease viewer. You have complete control over how you're client looks, we're just interested in the interface. If we manage to create a good, extensible, simple and future-proof API, we will officially support it. If Kenneth (CyberMistress) gets on-board as well, we should be able to establish it as the de-facto standard in our little niche industry.

I'll send you a PM to discuss how we will proceed further. If anybody else reading this wants to get involved, just let me know.

[lovesong]

I haven't read the thread thoroughly, but i've been thinking about something like this for years. Hooking up stimulation hardware to some erotic software. I especially like the idea of combining e-teasing with electrostimulation, because e-stim feels a lot more intense than mere vibrations. it has good dynamics and can deliver anything from nice tingling to pain. It can also be used on different parts of the body.

My dream would be an API that's easily integrated with adobe AIR, which opens the door for some easily available rich media-teasing :) Having the e-tease give a sound output to a phaser would be the easy way of doing it, but then you can't have a sound output... Another way would be making an iphone app that would let the adobe air application send commands to the iphone, starting e-stim sessions from a playlist. This would be good because the user wouldn't have to build their own elaborate hardware, just the phaser.

[janmb]

Great initiative, but please do yourselves and everyone else the favour of forgetting the existence of XML or any other markup language for that matter. They are simply a crappy basis when what you want to create is a simple, procedural language. In fact, for all its flaws, Basic, Pascal or Ada would be far better comparisons for this project. Not necessarily use any of them, but they offer the general sort of syntax you really should want